


To Build An English Essay

by Owldork1998 (redlipstickkisses), redlipstickkisses



Category: Original Work, To Build a Fire - Jack London
Genre: Analysis, Bad Spelling & Grammar, Character Analysis, Dogs, Essays, Global Warming, Nature, No Filter, Philosophy, Please Kill Me, Sorry Not Sorry, Stream of Consciousness, What Did We Ever Do To Deserve Dogs?, Written for a Class, cursing, death comes to us all, don't mess with mother nature, editing is evil, i have lots of opinions, i just want feedback guys, it will fuck you up without a second thought, not fact checked, now with finished essay, probably, who let this idiot have a dog, who let this idiot out, why is that not a tag?, yet - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-13
Updated: 2018-01-18
Packaged: 2019-03-04 04:37:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13356648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redlipstickkisses/pseuds/Owldork1998, https://archiveofourown.org/users/redlipstickkisses/pseuds/redlipstickkisses
Summary: A man died and a dog lived and the Yukon thawed and froze yet again and the world spun on because ultimately, humanity is a single footnote in the textbook of the universe. If we are not careful we, as humans, will soon suffer the same fate as the nameless man who we follow through his last few hours. An anonymous death, no name left to be remembered by, the world going on without us.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first draft of my english essay on To build a Fire, and before I edit the shit out of it, I felt like it needed to be shared in all its rambling glory, so feedback guys, it would be appreciated

     Okay, fuckers let's talk about “To Build A Fire” by Jack London, and how it is basically telling us to check ourselves before we wreak ourselves.  The main character is an arrogant idiot. That’s it, I can’t come up with a more accurate summary just- _who let this goddamned idiot out?_ Jack London as a prospector no doubt saw many deaths like these. Men who thought the rules didn’t apply to them and that those who had survived the long Yukon winters were just being “womanish” or over careful, who went out and were found dead, or never found at all. It is the height of human arrogance to think that you can survive a Yukon Winter all by yourself. It is cold, it is dark and it is some of the most extreme conditions on earth. To this day people are driven mad by the darkness.

 

     This dude was dead the minute he ignored the older prospector. There are two good reasons you don’t go out without a partner in sub-zero temps, if you stop moving long enough to make a fire you will literally freeze and, the cold makes you stupid. However, if you have a partner, you have someone to check you, to make sure you don’t do something stupid-like build a fire directly under a snow-laden tree that _you were just disturbing_ \- and to set up or light the fire while you walk blood back into your extremities. 

 

     Also, do you know how bad this guy had to be for his dog to be walking  _ behind _ him? Huskies, Samoyeds, and Malamutes are born athletes, hardy, loyal survivors bred to withstand the most punishing conditions of the Klondike. However they are mortal, and they are just as susceptible to injury as we are. The dog should have had some kind of bootie on to protect its paws from sharp ice crystals and blister-causing ice balls. Natives have used leather wraps for their dogs' feet for centuries and the prospectors definitely knew about them. Of course, most prospectors were incurable racists. 

 

     The dog is obviously aware the man does not have its interests in his mind, let alone it’s best interests. It is quite easy to gain the loyalty of a dog, especially a malamute, as they are exceedingly social creatures who want to please. It is obvious to anyone who has ever met a dog in their life that this man does not treat his dog properly. If he had treated his dog properly it would have been walking alongside or slightly in front of him, in the perfect position for him to be warned of the hidden springs by the dog's instincts and reactions to the terrain well before they became the deadly threat they did. It is obvious he viewed it as a dumb animal and not the intelligent and loyal creature it truly is. Anyone with an ounce of sense knows that if a dog doesn't want to continue on a set path, there is usually a reason that should be investigated, in this case, the most obvious danger was the hidden springs so he could have saved himself trouble, time and exposure to the cold by adjusting his course when the dog refused to go on, instead of pushing the dog out in front of him, causing it to sink its front legs into icy water. Of course, these dogs are bred for the ice and snow and are far more adapted to it than us humans, but they can still be hurt by it. The dog could have suffered much the same fate the man did, plus, bloody ripped up paws as a result of that little dip. There is a reason the dog fears the man. Obviously the man has a shred of decency in that he helps the dog remove some of the ice from between its toes, but in doing so he both stops and removes his mittens so he can use his fingers, further exposing his fingers to the cold and worsening his frostbite and lowering his body temperature even further through lack of blood flow. This act of generosity is not enough to make up for the previous mistreatment however and the dog shies away from him, following him, and so the man loses his early warning system. He has succeeded in alienating his only possible ally in this frigid world. 

 

     He is quite careless when it comes to interacting with the world around him. Yes, he observes the river and creek with its twists and turns and looks for springs, but it is the subtler things that spell his doom. He does not pay closer hed to the temperature other than to think of it as cold, not bothering to linger on the repercussions of the cold. He builds his first fire directly under the spruce tree he had just gathered twigs from, heedless of how both the gathering and fire would affect the snow-laden branches. And he drops moss and rotten grass into his final fire, scattering it beyond saving. His carelessness is, in the end, the true cause of death. If he had been a bit more careful, a bit more cautious, a bit more aware of the world around him he may have avoided the pitfalls that led to his death.

 

     The Yukon is cold and unforgiving. It is beautiful because of this. Undeniably gorgeous in the same way the man's amber muzzle of frozen tobacco spit gleaming in the dim light was, even as it froze his lips shut. It is one of the few places left that reminds you of how small and inconsequential you truly are. A place that reminds you that you only have one life and you cannot afford to be careless because you do not get a second chance and one misstep can mean your life. It reminds you that actions have consequences. 

 

     The man's mistreatment of his dog caused him to lose his only ally, his haste to make a fire doomed his best chance of survival, and his arrogance doomed him when he decided he didn’t need to travel with a partner. For every action, there will always be an equal and opposite reaction, and those that are not careful will experience the truth of this in the harshest way. 

 

     Our arrogance and fear and self-centeredness make us desperately cling to the idea that we are the ultimate evolution of life on this planet, never to be surpassed. This is a lie we tell ourselves to help us sleep at night. We are ruining the world around us, using up resources, making places uninhabitable in our greed and short-sightedness. Those that can look past tomorrow to the future can see that we are alienating our only allies in a way that not even a recent kindness will be able to fix. A man died and a dog lived and the Yukon thawed and froze yet again and the world spun on because ultimately, humanity is a single footnote in the textbook of the universe. If we are not careful we, as humans, will soon suffer the same fate as the nameless man who we follow through his last few hours. An anonymous death, no name left to be remembered by, the world going on without us. 


	2. What Was Actually Submitted

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I got a 90 on this and how? Editing this was hell cause it was only allowed to be 2 pages double spaced and it took me 2 days, kill me double spacing is my nemesis, why use it when you can have more words??

In “To Build A Fire” the author Jack London uses the contrast of humanity and nature to illustrate how fallible we are. We repeatedly see instances where mistakes return to haunt the man. Jack London as a prospector undoubtedly saw many deaths like these. Prospectors who thought the rules were for the _“womanish” 1, _who were later found dead, or never found at all.

“ _The absence of sun from the sky, the tremendous cold, and the strangeness and weirdness of it all” 2_\- The Yukon is the perfect setting for this story. It is one of the few wild places left; reminding us of how small and inconsequential we truly are. A place that reminds us that you do not get a second chance, and one misstep can mean your life. That you must be quick and alert, not only in the things of life, but also the significances of them. In the best of times the Yukon is unforgiving, it is cruelest in winter. In some of the most extreme conditions on earth, no matter how careful you are, you are at risk; to this day people are driven mad by the darkness or frozen by the cold. All actions have consequences, and that is something this story excels in conveying.

London describes the man as a _“chechaquo,” 3_ a newcomer, and says that the trouble with him is that _“he was without imagination” 4. _His inability to grasp the scope of this new world blinds him to both the advice of others and the world around him. While he observes _“the changes in the creek, the curves and bends and timber jams” 5 _and pays careful attention to where he places his feet, his subtle mistakes shine through. London says, _“He was quick and alert in the things of life, but only in the things, and not in the significances.” 6_ He does not bother to linger on the repercussions of the cold, _“Fifty degrees below zero was to him just precisely fifty degrees below zero. That there should be anything more to it than that was a thought that never entered his head.” 7 _He ignores the advice of the experienced prospector even though he had been _“very serious in laying down the law that no man must travel alone in the Klondike after fifty below.” 8_ There are reasons you don’t go out without a partner in sub-zero temperatures.

Cold quickly impairs your judgment. The man builds his first fire under the spruce tree he had gathered twigs from, heedless of how both the gathering and fire would affect the snow-laden branches because, “ _it had been easier to pull the twigs from the brush and drop them directly on the fire.” 9_ His failure with his first fire then causes his fingers to freeze, _“To build the fire he had been forced to remove his mittens, and the fingers had quickly gone numb.” 10 _The frostbite makes it impossible for him to use his matches properly and causes him to burn his hands. He drops moss and rotten grass into his final fire, and while that might not have suffocated the small fire, his attempts to remove the moss scatters the fire beyond saving.

There is safety in numbers, no one person can prepare for every eventuality. Something the man only realizes after he makes a deadly mistake, _“If he had only had a trail mate he would have been in no danger now. The trail mate could have built the fire.” 11_ With an extra set of hands, the gathering of kindling would have gone much faster. A partner could have quickly pointed out his error in judgment. When you travel with a partner there is always someone else to set up or light the fire while you walk blood back into your extremities.

If he had been a bit more careful, a bit more aware of the world around him, he might have avoided the pitfalls that led to his death. Instead, his haste to make a fire scattered what few flames he could manage and his arrogance condemned him the moment he decided to travel alone. A man died, and a dog lived, and the Yukon thawed and froze yet again, and the world spun on.


End file.
